Ogilvy in fast start at Target World Challenge

Updated: 25 February 2007 10:35 IST

Geoff Ogilvy moved into contention with a fast start Saturday in the Target World Challenge.

Reported by Indo-Asian News Service

Read Time: 2 mins

Thousand Oaks, California:
Geoff Ogilvy moved into contention with a fast start Saturday in the Target World Challenge. He wound up alone in the lead thanks to a sloppy finish by tournament host Tiger Woods.
Ogilvy birdied four of his first seven holes, then hit 8-iron inside 2 feet on the final hole for birdie that gave him a 5-under 67 and a one-shot lead over Woods (70) and Chris DiMarco (68) going into the final round of the final tournament of the year.
Ogilvy was at 11-under 205. Woods birdied his first two holes in a cold, miserable rain, shared the lead with Ogilvy through sunshine on the back nine, then got a huge break on the par-5 16th that ultimately worked against him.
He pulled his 3-wood so far left that it was headed toward a hazard when it caught a cart path and wound up against the curb, giving him free relief on the side of the hill.
Instead of laying up, he had just enough of an opening to go for the green, but hit the next 3-wood into a hazard, and swung hard just to escape into a bunker. He failed to save par, however, slipping back into a tie for the lead.
DiMarco birdied his last three holes for a 68 and was at 206, earning a spot in the final group Sunday, a good chance to end another winless year on the U.S. PGA Tour with a $1.35 million consolation prize.
Sweden's Henrik Stenson was tied for the lead through 12 holes, but took two double bogeys and wound up five shots behind after a 73.
The Swede found two greenside bunkers on the par-5 13th to take double bogey, then hit a drive so far right on the 18th that he wound up playing down the adjacent ninth fairway.
His third shot was in the collar of a steep bunker, and he did well to get that one on the green.
Paul Casey shot 70 and was at 209, with David Toms (68) another shot behind.
Ogilvy got into the mix not by opening with consecutive birdies - Woods did that, too - but with birdies on the sixth and seventh holes, both during a cold, steady rain that made those holes tough.
Woods, meanwhile, plodded along with pars until ending his 27-hole streak without a bogey by making one from the right rough.
What followed was perhaps his best swing of the round, a 3-iron on the 232-yard eighth hole to 8 feet for birdie, the only one at that hole Saturday. That kept him around the top of the leaderboard the rest of the way. (AP)